


The Hope County Festival

by BlueEyedArcher



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Domestic, Alternate Universe - Normal Life, Dancing, Domestic Fluff, Festivals, Fluff, Fun and Games, Hope County Festival, No cults, One Shot, Partying, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-17
Updated: 2018-06-17
Packaged: 2019-05-24 11:58:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14954258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueEyedArcher/pseuds/BlueEyedArcher
Summary: Come one! Come all! Welcome to the Hope County Festival!





	The Hope County Festival

**Author's Note:**

> This was a little thing that popped into my head simply because I really wanted to see everyone happy and enjoying themselves. Enjoy!

**“Come one! Come all! Come to the Hope County Festival!”**

 

The flyers and announcements were scattered all over the Whitetails and Henbane and completely took over the Holland Valley. It was the only thing going on for miles every which way. The Hope County Festival was the cat’s meow. The biggest Festival in four counties, even budding up against the Holland Valley Testicle Festival. The entire town of Fall’s End had become a colorful spectacle of banners and tents and trailers pulled up. The streets lined with specialty vendors from all around the county offering all kinds of delicacies and goods. There were entire sections cordoned off for specialty events scheduled for later in the day, stands and audiences waiting at every corner for some event or another to start.

 

The batting cages were set up and friendly team tournaments for baseball were playing. At the moment it was Virgil’s Cougars against the Faith’s Angels. Later there was a match between Eli’s Whitetails and Jacob Seed’s Judges. They were small teams of dozen or so people, all enjoying the summer fun and games. Small plastic trophies would be handed out. The coaches all had their budding rivalries going on but at the end of the day, it was all in good fun with good sportsmanship to boot. Chances were, the Deputies would find them all sharing a few pints at the Spread Eagle and talking about the good old days when they all used to play the game.

 

Across from the Church, John Seed had a dunk tank set up, his charming smile coaxing parents to climb on up and sit on the platforms for their kids to throw softballs at the trigger. The endless squeals of laughter and giggles from the children as they watched their mom or dad plummet into the tank with a startled yelp or holler, was a delight. As the deputies made their rounds to check on how things were going, Hudson managed to talk Pratt into hopping on up onto the platform as they each took a turn throwing one of three balls. Hudson went first, as it was her idea, spurred on by Pratt’s playful mocking and cocky attitude. The ball hit the edge of the target, gaining a startled worried noise from Pratt but ultimately he didn’t drop. Hudson settled for the shocked expression Staci had on his face when he thought he about went under. Next up was Rook who missed by a few centimeters. Hudson patted them on their back with a ‘better luck next time’. Next was Sheriff Whitehorse who stepped up to the plate. His serene fatherly expression pulling into a large grin.

 

“Come on boss! Give me all you got.” Staci jabbed, his cocky little smirk spread wide as the Sheriff wound back like a pro. That worried look in Staci’s eyes widened as the ball was let loose and hit home on the target. There was a split second delay in his reaction before the yell was drowned out by the loud splashing in the tank. Staci bobbed to the surface with a bewildered expression as Whitehorse chuckled. John handed over a printed photo from trigger activated camera that caught Staci’s priceless reaction as he was plunged into the lukewarm tank water.

 

“This will be going on the bulletin board.” Hudson preened as they gathered up their wet deputy with a towel and started on their way to the next stand.

 

The sound of planes roaring to life and flying over head signaled another event was starting soon. There was an announcement for the air show at the edge of town, a bright yellow plane was already flying practice routes against the bright light of the sun, making their way to the starting point. There were obstacles set up in the air, surprisingly close to the ground and the plane had a few additional accessories then the deputies were used to seeing. Whitehorse bought his crew a couple of hot dogs and drinks, sneaking in a big bag of kettle corn in there as they made their way to watch the show. The people were kept back by the fences and taped off areas, settling into the portable wooden stands. They slid right up on the ends as the voice of a female announcer came.

 

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the King of the Skies, Mr. Nick Rye and his plane, Carmina!” The voice, the deputies recognized to be Nick’s wife, Kim. She narrated his stunts as he swooped and looped and dived through one obstacle after another. Banking sharply here, going a wide berth there and coming back in upside down and a little too close to the ground for the crowd’s comfort. Everyone was on their feet with tension. His trails were marked by blue smoke from the little accessories attached to Carmina. He spun and twirled as those patterns continued through the air, moving faster than many thought that plane could really go. When the stunts reached their climax, Nick flew straight up towards the sun, spiraling, spiraling, as blue smoke trailed and swirled around him, then he leveled out and banked to turn straight back to the earth, diving, diving, diving until he was so close to the earth, he pulled up last second and it was dust and smoke as far as the eye can see. Then a yellow blur that burst through the clouds. More smoke exploded from the side canisters in a colorful array of red, white and blue coloring, a perfect end stunt to drive the crowd into a maddening frenzy of applause and shock at the end.

 

From there, they moved on to a shooting gallery, watching several contestants compete through the levels of basic shooting structures in timed formats until they reached the end. The top two left standing get to go head to head with Grace Armstrong herself, running through the timed courses and shooting specified targets mingling with non-targets. It was a fun test of skill that got all the gun nuts out in their cargo shorts, fancy holsters and NRA or militia themed hats. There were even a few young military dogs in the mix, joining the runs.

 

Speaking of dogs, Boomer and a few dozen other canines from around the county were doing their own obstacle courses and running dock jump races, splashing their owners and the nearby crowd as they shoot off and take a running leap after a plastic duck toy their owners throw. Nearby, Miss Mable had Peaches prowling around on the end of a leash, interacting with Cheeseburger the bear. They were standing on their own little pedestals as children marveled and giggled at the oversized predators and learned a little something about their local wildlife. The FANG center had a trailer with several others of their sanctuary animals on display with their caretakers educating the interested masses on the large beasts. There were predators and prey alike.

 

They were startled by the sudden explosive blasts nearby and a crowd of excited cheers and startled shrieks that assured them that it wasn’t anything disastrous. They made their way to another cordoned off area, this one working with the Fire Dept to show off their skills to the people with the help of Sharky Boshaw of all people and Hurk Drubman. Between the two of them, they were blowing things up and setting a lot of stuff on fire. All of it overseen by the firefighters who had some semblance of control over the situation. They were showing the people how different fires need to be handled differently. It’s not something you can handle with a garden hose or, as Sharky liked to add, just stand over it and piss.

 

The deputies marveled at the situation but quickly found somewhere else to put their attention when things started to become a little too anxiety inducing for them. They snagged a few bags of cotton candy from one vendor and headed on over to another shooting course. This one had Dutch’s niece doing tricks shots for the crowd of every caliber they could think of. Some had Rook in awe of her precision and skill. Eli’s Whitetails had joined in like Robin Hood and his Merry Men, decked out in their green outfits, a stark contrast against Jess’s own black regalia. Their attention is diverted back towards the shrieks and squeals of laughter that stir up back at the dog jump. Apparently Peaches and Cheeseburger were getting jealous and wanted a swim badly enough, that they found their way into the large pool the dogs had been diving into. The people hosting the event were only marginally upset but the crowd enjoyed it and Boomer was racing around the edges until he jumped right in and paddled about with a squeaky duck in his jaws, clamping and unclamping with happy little trills.

 

They continued on their way and found Mary May Fairgrave hosting a massive barbecue in the parking lot of the Spread Eagle. There was a beer tent set up outside and Father Jerome had his flock selling tickets for a raffle later on. They had tables set up to help distribute the food for the line up of patrons dying for a rack of ribs or a pulled pork sandwich. As the deputies past by, Mary May passed a crate of bottles over to one of her helpers to carry to a back counter and waved Whitehorse over. “On the house guys.” She hollered over the music blaring from the speakers around the tent, some old country being played on a stage further down the street and carrying over on the PA system up and down Fall’s End. She handed out white styrofoam trays to each of the deputies with bbq sandwiches, a bottle of water, chips and a cookie.

 

They found their way to a set up of picnic tables under a tent and sat down to eat. They had a better view of the stage and watched the musicians swap out and change out instruments or set ups. Wheaty kept the hype of the crowd going and helped relay information about events around town and special announcements, playing idle music of his choice between performances, usually something older and danceable. The whir of chopper blades caught Pratt’s attention through the roar of the crowd and all the people, his head swiveling around in time to see Adelaide Drubman doing chopper rides with Tulip over the festivities.

 

As night carried on, the stage was set for more permanent performances. The Spread Eagle was a hub for heavier alcohol and drinks as the people piled in as night fell. The streets became a dance floor and everyone got together to Boot, Scootin Boogie the night away. Hudson and Pratt galloped their way around the crowd, merrily prancing about with boisterous laughter like two good old friends. Whitehorse swung a dance with Mary May. Faith’s white visage could be seen enchanting a handful of young men into twirling around on the floor, even singing a few songs herself for the people. The Seed brothers apparently had quite the voices themselves as they were pulled up on stage. It started off comical but the crowds were shocked and awed by the end. Mainly by Joseph Seed himself. They dances and weaved through the bodies of farm folk, saturated by the heat of the summer sun and drunk on the energy of a good day’s break and merriment. Even Sharky and Hurk were in their own little area busting a move. Adelaide had her arms around her newest boy toy while Nick and Kim swayed in an intimate slow dance, despite the energy of the song. The pilot holding his wife close as they adored each other in their own little world.

 

As the night carried on, the announcement came for the people to look to the skies as they lit up with a colorful array of fireworks. Explosive bursts of color and designs that awed the crowd into a sudden stillness. Many of the bodies holding each other close as they _ooh-_ ed and _aaah-_ ed _._ Children pointed to the skies, smiles plastered on everyone’s faces in excitement as they cheered with the bigger explosions and delivered softer murmurs for the smaller ones. It was a beautiful end to a long well deserved day of fun after another long and hard year of work. Every hardship and inconvenience melted away with the childish glee every person harbored in their hearts. It was a break that even the most bitter rivalries needed to soothe over and laugh a little.


End file.
